The Boy in the Striped Pajamas appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The picture worked well.
Sharpness was usually fine. Wider shots tended to be a bit soft, but those instances weren’t extreme, and most of the flick offered very good clarity.
Shimmering and jaggies were absent, and I saw no edge haloes. Source flaws were non-existent, as I detected no specks, marks or other blemishes.
The film’s palette went with a low-ket mix of amber and teal. Within that design range, the colors seemed well-depicted.
Blacks seemed deep and rich, while low-light shots brought appealing clarity. Overall, this became a solid presentation.
Don’t expect fireworks from the film’s DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack, as we got a mix heavy on music and general environmental material. When the track used the side or rear speakers, it was usually for score or material like nature sounds.
Outside of a thunderstorm late in the tale, nothing memorable fleshed out the track. It fit the movie reasonably well but didn’t add much.
Audio quality was fine. Speech seemed natural and concise, and the score demonstrated pretty good vivacity.
Effects did little to tax my system but they were clear and accurate enough. Overall, this ended up as a decent but unspectacular track.
As we move to extras, we open with an audio commentary from writer/director Mark Herman and author John Boyne. Both sit together for this running, screen-specific look at the source novel and its adaptation, story/characters, cast and performances, sets and locations, editing and deleted scenes, music, production design and period details, and connected domains.
For the most part, the track offers an engaging discussion, albeit one that concentrates more on the novel and changes made to it than anything else. A bit more balance and discussion of the actual shoot would be good but this nonetheless turns into a fairly solid chat.
Friendship Beyond the Fence goes for 20 minutes, 31 seconds. It comes with notes from Herman, Boyne, cinematographer Benoit Delhomme, producers David Heyman and Rosie Allison, acting coach Celia Bannerman, production designer Martin Childs, costume designer Natalie Ward, hair designer Marese Langan, and actors Amber Beattie, David Thewlis, Vera Farmiga, Asa Butterfield, Jack Scanlon, Rupert Friend and David Hayman.
“Fence” covers story and characters, the adaptation of the source and changes to it, sets and locations, costumes and period details, cinematography, cast and performances, and historical elements. Despite some of the usual happy talk, “Fence” gives us some good production info.
Five Deleted Scenes span a total of six minutes, 20 seconds. The first two show more of Bruno and family before they came to the concentration camp, while the other three depict more of Bruno’s new life.
That means pretty much everything here would’ve come before Bruno meets Shmuel, a segment that already goes too long. As such, these cuts made sense.
We can watch the scenes with or without commentary from Herman and Boyne. They give us rudiments about the segments but don’t tell us much of real interest.
The disc opens with ads for The Conspirators, Rabbit Hole and Biutiful. No trailer for Pajamaes appears here.
Note that this 2024 Paramount reissue literally reproduces the original Lionsgate Blu-ray from 2011. That means it still comes with the old Lionsgate ads!
Given its personal tale, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas feels like it should offer a powerful take on the Holocaust. Unfortunately, the story and characters seem thin and the film’s tendency toward melodrama makes it a disappointment. The Blu-ray comes with solid picture, adequate audio and a nice mix of bonus materials. I hoped Pajamas would deliver an evocative story but the end result fizzles.